Nailing Your Resume

By: Lynne Marks|18 Dec 2013

Having a resume that jumps out from the stack of hundreds of other’s is a tough accomplishment to achieve. These days, shorter is sweeter. A one to two page resume is best. Do not put your goals or objectives on this document; your resume is not about your generic wishes and needs.

Mirror the terminology in your resume to the job descriptions that are attractive to you, and if necessary, have several versions of your resume, tailoring each to the specific job for which you are applying. Do not pad the resume with very short irrelevant summer projects, such as babysitting or dog walking. However, you can use any interim jobs or unpaid experience as solid examples of learned skills, such as customer relationships, sales, problem solving, and team building.

Cover letters have mixed reviews but several advantages. Do not fill them with platitudes and make the letter a valuable extension of your interview. One way to write your cover letter is to thank your interviewer for their time and consideration, a courtesy that is hardly ever practiced and may help you stand out from the crowd. You can also re-highlight your skills and how you think you would fit within the company. This also shows the employer how well you handle business communications, especially if that is an important skill for the job. Lastly, never forget the vitality of correct spelling and grammar!